10.08.2008

paper trail...

okay, so i have a paper issue...too much of it. i don't know what to keep and for how long...i keep tax stuff for sure in a file..but what about that day to day clutter, papers from the doctor, receipts, forms, mail, pictures ethan colored/paint/drew on etc. i just don't know what to do with it all. we seem to have a catch-all place, right on our counter in the kitchen and on the table...yuck! it's bugging me. i am generally more of a stack-maker and go through it later, but i really don't like the way that looks...i need a better system...how do you guys contain and make functional all your papers etc. that you have??????

4 comments:

I have a filing cabinet, but it all tends to just get thrown on the counter as well... Drives my husband nunts! :-) I use to file everything, but as technology has given us stuff on the web, I don't find it necessary to keep all my credit card bills and bank statements. I guess in a nut shell, if I just go through it RIGHT when I get it, then I can keep it under control! :-)

Thanks for linking me to your blog! I have put your name in the bucket 3 times!

I CANNOT get a handle of this myself, but I recently read about something. This lady buys an expandable file folder and then marks each tab as a month of the year. She puts all reciepts and anything pertaining to that month in that pocket and then she knows exactly where to go for everything. She mostly used it for all receipts and bill stuff, and would save each years folder for seven years. I think I'm going to try it out as a place to put all my papers until I sit and go through them all. Just an idea!

To help with the pictures and things that Ethan does you might want to think about getting an under the bed box. I don't know if his bed is raised or not, but growing up each of the kids in my family had a box that fit under our bed (it's long, fairly wide but not tall) that we put all the stuff we created at home or school. I loved my under-the-bed box, and I still have a lot of the stuff from it to this day. I think you can get plastic ones at Target or Wal-Mart and they are in the College/Dorm section or with the rest of the rubbermaid stuff. Because really, he's only going to start getting more papers when he starts school.

Thanks for this post Jen!! I think these ideas are awesome and all I have to add is you aren't alone as you know from my house. . . With some of these tips though maybe we can overcome the paperness. Good Luck!